George Floyd’s death could be “a turning point” for the United States

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Many protests in the country on Sunday were peaceful, but there were also pockets of arson, vandalism and looting.

USA TODAY

Former President Barack Obama has called on a “new generation of activists” to channel the outrage over the death of George Floyd, an African-American man who died after a Minneapolis police officer held him back by putting him one knee on the neck for “a real change”. “

In an essay published on Medium Monday, Obama said that many people had asked him how the momentum of protests against Floyd’s death could lead to a movement to resolve “the current problem of inequality of justice”.

In response, Obama offered some advice rooted in past experience.

“First, the waves of protests across the country represent genuine legitimate frustration over the decades-long failure to reform police practices and the broader criminal justice system in the United States,” Obama wrote.

He said that “the overwhelming majority of participants were peaceful, courageous, responsible and inspiring,” adding that they “deserve our respect and support, not condemnation.”

But “the small minority of people who have used violence in various forms, whether through anger or mere opportunism, endanger innocent people” and “aggravate the destruction of neighborhoods which are often already short of services and d ‘investments and harm the greatest cause. “

Therefore, violence must not be excused, nor rationalized, nor participated in. If we want our criminal justice system, and American society as a whole, to operate on a higher code of ethics, then we have to model that code ourselves. “

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The former president also warned against dropping political participation by believing that only protest can bring about change.

“The purpose of the protest is to raise public awareness, to highlight injustice and to make powers uncomfortable,” said Obama. “But ultimately, aspirations must translate into specific laws and institutional practices and in a democracy, which only happens when we elect government officials to meet our demands.”

Obama said that too many people were focused on national politics, while “the elected officials who matter most to reform the police and the criminal justice system work at the national and local levels.”

“Unfortunately, the voter turnout in these local elections is generally pitifully low, especially among young people, which makes no sense given the direct impact of these offices on social justice issues,” he said. he writes.

The former community organizer said that if people “want to make real change, then the choice is not between protest and politics. We have to do both.”

Obama: George Floyd’s death should not be “normal”

And he said it was important to make concrete demands for criminal justice reform that recognize that the needs for change are not universal and vary from community to community.

“The more we can demand criminal justice and police reform, the more difficult it will be for elected officials to just say a few words to the cause and get back to work as usual once the protests are gone” , did he declare.

Obama directed aspiring activists to an “advocacy toolkit” released last year by the Leaders’ Conference on Civil and Human Rights on how to create a “public safety vision that respects and protects life” human and educate those most affected by harmful police policies. ” He also shared a link to an Obama Foundation web page that directs people to relevant resources and organizations.

“I recognize that the past few months have been harsh and disheartening as the fear, grief, uncertainty and hardships of a pandemic have been compounded by tragic reminders that prejudice and inequality still shape much of life But watching the increased activism of young people in recent weeks, from all races and stations, gives me hope, “wrote Obama.

“If in the future we can channel our justifiable anger into peaceful, sustained and effective action, then this moment can be a turning point in our nation’s long journey to live by our highest ideals.”

Obama also touched on Floyd’s death on Friday, sharing his thoughts and conversations about the latest police murder of an unarmed black man in a shared statement on social media.

“It shouldn’t be” normal “in 2020 in America,” said the country’s first black president. “If we want our children to grow up in a nation that lives by its highest ideals, we can and must be better.

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